A few of you might remember me playing records on one of these, long ago. A JVC VL-5 turntable.
I bought a VL-5 in 1974. It was my turntable in college and beyond. There it is on my right, with the dust cover raised, in this old photo of my post-college basement dungeon.
I sold the VL-5 circa 1982, when I switched to German turntables with straight, low-mass tonearms, as was the trend. A year later, the Compact Disc was introduced in America, a mere 25 years after the introduction of stereo records.
On a whim, yesterday I searched for a VL-5 on Craig’s List, and there one was, in very good condition at a reasonable price. So, yielding to the impulse, I bought it. Now it’s in my office, 50 years old and working almost as if new.
I still have the small Pioneer amp in that photo, purchased from Brad, who some of you know, of course. The larger amp is a Philips 384. It’s something else from my audio past that I sold and might look for.
Ah the memories…..